Topic: iOS 8

In advance of next week's iPhone 6 unveiling, Apple on Friday released a consumer-facing app for the TestFlight beta service that will come online alongside iOS 8, and is also said to have begun preparations to seed carrier partners with beta builds of iOS 8.0.1.

After releasing a set of developer rules for HealthKit in the last iOS 8 beta, Apple on Tuesday updated its App Store Review Guidelines to restrict apps from storing user health data in iCloud, as well as add coverage for upcoming frameworks including app extensions, HomeKit and TestFlight.

With the inclusion of HomeKit and HealthKit in Apple's forthcoming iOS 8, as well as rumors of a new 'iPhone 6' mobile payment system, investment firm Piper Jaffray has increased its price target on the company's stock to $120.

A set of rules discovered in the latest iOS 8 beta show Apple is already taking steps to ensure sensitive user health data harvested by the upcoming HealthKit API remains private, especially as it applies to firms wanting to harness the information for targeted ad campaigns.

In an email sent out on Monday, Apple informed developers that upcoming iCloud-based features like iCloud Drive, Mail Drop and more will require iOS 8 beta 5 or OS X Yosemite Developer Preview 5 or later to operate.

While developers were not supplied a new beta of iOS 8 this week alongside the latest pre-release version of OS X Yosemite, Apple's carrier partners were in fact provided iOS 8 beta 6 for testing prior to the release of the golden master.

Ahead of Apple's iOS 8 rollout this fall, a report on Tuesday revealed the company has been in talks with major healthcare providers and medical records systems firms over the HealthKit framework, which will serve as a central hub for users' personal health data.

A new feature discovered in Apple's latest iOS 8 beta release automatically populates the Phone app's Recents list with information about points of interest when dialing out from Maps, applying correct name, addresses and even Yelp data to recent-dialed numbers.

For iTunes Store customers who purchase content via discount season passes, Apple has begun sending native push notifications in the latest beta of iOS 8 when new content is available -- a change from its previous email alerts.

Consumers new to iOS -- as well as novice users or those who do not closely follow Apple updates -- have a new learning resource in Apple's new "Tips" app, added to iOS 8 in the mobile operating system's fourth beta.

In response to complaints published by European Commission regulators regarding In App Purchases, Apple has issued a statement outlining that it already does more than anyone else in the industry, and will be further enhancing its efforts to secure app purchases by children in iOS 8 this fall.

On Friday, the president of the National Federation of the Blind clarified the group's recent resolution calling on Apple to collaborate with the group's efforts to expand accessibility among third party apps, noting a "good relationship" despite a "provocative and poorly reported article" on the subject released by Reuters.

Apple on Thursday released iTunes version 11.3 and with it announced the availability of high-definition iTunes Extras for the Mac and Apple TV, with the bonus features coming to iOS 8 after the operating system's rollout this fall.

With the release of iOS 8 beta 3 on Monday, Apple continued to build out its forthcoming Health app with new features, including support for the iPhone 5s' M7 coprocessor and additional data collection categories.

Among the new settings options and user interface tweaks in Monday's iOS 8 beta release, Apple has switched on Wi-Fi calling for T-Mobile handsets, granting developers with access to the software a chance to test out the feature.